Back وو شتيان Arabic وو شتيان ARZ উ জেতিয়ান AS U Tsetyan AZ ایکینجی زتیان AZB У Цзэцянь BE Wu Zetian BI ཝུའུ་ཙེ་ཐེན། BO Wu Zetian Catalan Ū Cáik-tiĕng CDO
| Wu Zetian 武則天 | |||||||||||||||||
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_-_%E6%AD%A6%E5%89%87%E5%A4%A9.png) Song dynasty portrait after the painting by Zhang Xuan | |||||||||||||||||
| Empress of China | |||||||||||||||||
| Reign | 16 October 690[1][note 1] – 21 February 705[2][note 2] | ||||||||||||||||
| Coronation | 16 October 690 | ||||||||||||||||
| Predecessor | Dynasty established (Emperor Ruizong as emperor of the Tang dynasty) | ||||||||||||||||
| Successor | Dynasty abolished (Emperor Zhongzong restored as emperor of the Tang dynasty) | ||||||||||||||||
| Empress dowager of China | |||||||||||||||||
| Tenure | 27 December 683 – 16 October 690 | ||||||||||||||||
| Empress consort of China | |||||||||||||||||
| Tenure | 22 November 655 – 27 December 683 | ||||||||||||||||
| Born | 17 February 624 Lizhou, Tang China | ||||||||||||||||
| Died | 16 December 705 (aged 81) Luoyang, Tang China | ||||||||||||||||
| Burial | |||||||||||||||||
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| House | Wu (武) | ||||||||||||||||
| Dynasty |
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| Father | Wu Shiyue | ||||||||||||||||
| Mother | Lady Yang | ||||||||||||||||
| Religion | Buddhism | ||||||||||||||||
| Wu Zetian | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Traditional Chinese | 武則天 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 武则天 | ||||||||||||||||||
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| Wu Zhao | |||||||||||||||||||
| Chinese | 武曌 | ||||||||||||||||||
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| Wu Hou | |||||||||||||||||||
| Chinese | 武后 | ||||||||||||||||||
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| Tian Hou | |||||||||||||||||||
| Chinese | 天后 | ||||||||||||||||||
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Wu Zetian[note 8] (17 February 624[note 9][note 10] – 16 December 705),[3][4] personal name Wu Zhao, was Empress of China from 660 to 705, ruling first through others and later in her own right. She ruled as empress consort through her husband Emperor Gaozong and later as empress dowager through her sons Emperors Zhongzong and Ruizong, from 660 to 690. She subsequently founded and ruled as empress regent of the Wu Zhou dynasty of China from 690 to 705.[3] She was the only female sovereign in the history of China widely regarded as legitimate. Under her 45-year reign, China grew larger, becoming one of the great powers of the world, its culture and economy were revitalized, and corruption in the court was reduced. She was eventually removed from power during a coup and died a few months later.
In early life, Wu was the concubine of Emperor Taizong. After his death, she married his ninth son and successor, Emperor Gaozong, officially becoming Gaozong's huanghou (皇后), or empress consort, the highest-ranking of the wives, in 655. Wu had considerable political power even before becoming empress consort, and began to control the court after her appointment. After Gaozong's debilitating stroke in 660, she became administrator of the court, a position with similar authority to the emperor's, until 683. History records that she "was at the helm of the country for long years, her power is no different from that of the emperor."[5] On Emperor Gaozong's death in 683, rather than entering into retirement (as was customary for royal widows), or not interfering in the government (according to the emperor's law, when he reaches the age of 17, he must rule by himself); Wu broke with tradition and took acquisition of complete power, refusing to allow any of her sons to rule. She took the throne in 690 by officially changing the name of the country from Tang to Zhou, changing the name of the royal family from Li to Wu, and holding a formal ceremony to crown herself as emperor.[6]
Empress Wu is considered one of the greatest emperors in Chinese history due to her strong leadership and effective governance, which made China one of the world's most powerful nations.[7][8][9] The importance to history of her tenure includes the major expansion of the Chinese empire, extending it far beyond its previous territorial limits, deep into Central Asia, and engaging in a series of wars on the Korean Peninsula, first allying with Silla against Goguryeo, and then against Silla over the occupation of former Goguryeo territory. Within China, besides the more direct consequences of her struggle to gain and maintain power, Wu's leadership resulted in important effects regarding social class in Chinese society and in relation to state support for Taoism, Buddhism, Confucianism, education and literature.
Wu played a key role in reforming the imperial examination system and encouraging capable officials to work in governance to maintain a peaceful and well-governed state. Effectively, these reforms improved her nation's bureaucracy by ensuring that competence, rather than family connections, became a key feature of the civil service.[10] Wu also had an important impact upon the statuary of the Longmen Grottoes and the "Wordless Stele" at the Qian Mausoleum, as well as the construction of some major buildings and bronze castings that no longer survive. Besides her career as a political leader, Wu also had an active family life. She was a mother of four sons, three of whom also carried the title of emperor, although one held that title only as a posthumous honor. One of her grandsons became the controversial Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, whose reign marked the turning point of the Tang dynasty into sharp decline.
- ^ Twitchett, Denis. "Chen gui and Other Works Attributed to Empress Wu Zetian" (PDF). Asia Major. 16 (1). Taipei: Academia Sinica: 33–109 [62]. Archived (PDF) from the original on 25 October 2020. Retrieved 29 August 2020.
- ^ Twitchett, Denis. Chen gui and Other Works Attributed to Empress Wu Zetian (PDF). p. 71. Archived (PDF) from the original on 25 October 2020. Retrieved 29 August 2020.
- ^ a b Pollard, Elizabeth (2015). Worlds Together Worlds Apart. New York: W.W. Norton Company. p. 318. ISBN 978-0-393-91847-2.
- ^ Paludan (1998), p. 100
- ^ [Volume 6]. [Old Book of Tang] (in Chinese) – via Wikisource.
內輔國政數十年，威勢與帝無異
[She assisted the emperor in governing for decades, with authority and power no different from the emperor.] - ^ Paludan (1998), p. 96
- ^ Wu, Zongguo (2019). 中古社会变迁与隋唐史研究 – 精（上下册） [Research on Medieval Social Change and Sui-Tang History (2 Volumes)] (in Chinese). Zhonghua Book Company. ISBN 9787101135060.
- ^ Chaturvedi, Amit (23 January 2024). "All About China's Empress Wu, World's Richest Woman Ever". NDTV. Archived from the original on 18 March 2024.
- ^ Mark, Emily. "Wu Zetian". World History Encyclopedia. Retrieved 4 October 2024.
- ^ Bell, Jo (2021). On This Day She: Putting Women Back into History, One Day at a Time. Metro Publishing. ISBN 978-1-78946-271-5.
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